Saturday, 2 April 2005

Waking Life (2001) - ickleReview (DVD)

Headfuck of a Richard Linklater movie, animated over the top of video footage. A guy (Wiley Wiggins from Dazed and Confused) wanders around his suburban town, as university professors, blond girls, boatmen and anarchists talk to him about existentialism, love, words as symbol, dreaming and evolution (and a whole load of other stuff). As in Slacker (another Linklater movie), most of the characters appear only once. It's really quite intellectual and mind-blowing in parts; I've benefitted from seeing it three or four times and so find it easier to follow what they're saying. Other viewers have complained that they're distracted by the visuals, which can be a bit trippy and unsettling, but you get used to them. This remains one of my favourite films, as every time I go back to it, I'm stimulated and usually discover something new. I have experienced it dragging towards the end, once I've figured out what it's all about.

Nugget: I love that Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke do a scene together, as their characters from Before Sunrise (this being in the days prior to Before Sunset). They return to their conversations about feeling like an old woman looking back on your life as a young girl and reincarnation.